Visual, Self-esteem, Routine

Visual

Visual clues work much better than written or verbal instructions. The child with Asperger Syndrome does not connect one event to another in their proper sequence. They hear the words but they do not understand them. They learn from repeated behaviour rather than working things out for themselves. Do not expect the child to be able to cope with a different task which you would expect him to know, from him having proven he knows how to do a similar task.

Self-esteem

Try not to critisize. Instead, praise what the child can achieve to encourage him to work harder towards reaching the desired goal. Aim for small steps towards your desired goal. As the child is praised for each achievement, his self-esteem will grow. This will create a cycle of gaining confidence and pride in himself and his achievements.

Routine

This child lives by routine. Any change, no matter how small, is desruptive to him and his stress will rise. The sooner you can act to reduce his stress level, the better.
e.g. Andrew was settling happily into Cubs. One evening the team leader was away and Andrew immediately asked his mother where the leader was. Assured she would be here soon, he went off to do work on one of his achievement badges. Twenty minutes later, Andrew was clinging to his mother, refusing to join the other children, becoming hotter and more stressed. He tried to tear off the badges on his Cub jumper, which his mother had lovingly sewn on, and which were very precious to Andrew.

• How the problem was solved

The mother whispered calmly to Andrew. She asked if he would like to go home and have some toast. Andrew immediately ran to get his coat. The entry in the behaviour book that night was "I managed to stay at Cubs for twenty minutes without the Cub Leader".

Body language and facial expressions

The child with Aspergers does not understand that other living things have feelings. He cannot read body language nor facial expressions. He will laugh, inappropriately, at your expression of pain when you stub your toe. He is not being cruel. He does not understand that you are feeling pain.

• How the problem was solved

Mirrors were used to encourage the child to see his own facial expressions incorporated into a game. "Show me a happy face" will eventually produce a smile. Remember to take turns and encourage your child to ask you to show a face, and other family members. Ideally you should all be seated in front of the same mirror.